Dec 31, 2017
Boiling over: State governments look the other way on food complaints
NEW DELHI:
■ Utsav Madan, a West Delhi resident, bought a packet of Moong Dal from a departmental store. As he boiled it the water turned a deep yellow. The artificial colour wore off.
■ Debashish, a Thane resident, bought a box of sweets from a restaurant. The restaurant was smelly. The sweets were sour and too old to eat.
Utsav and Debashish were victims of food adulteration. Across the country, consumers have complained about the quality of the food they are buying. These include milk and dairy products, spices and cereals. But unlike the hue and cry that breaks out when questions are asked on the quality of popular branded products—like Maggi noodles in 2015—they rarely merit government attention.
Data from the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) shows that state administrations choose to overlook not only complaints, but also evidence, of impure food. An analysis of the FSSAI data shows authorities have tested similar sample sizes of edibles (around 80,000 per year), while the number of ‘samples found adulterated’ has constantly risen in the same period.
Food safety officers in states are required to take food samples and send them for analysis in laboratories. A total of 84,537 samples were collected from all the states in 2014-15; 77,941 in 2015-16, and 80,463 in 2016-17.
In contrast, the number of adulterated food samples rose from 14,716 in 2014-15 to 16,133 in 2015-16 and to 16,659 in 2016-17.
“Departments in most states are short-staffed. There are only about 30-40 or 50 food inspectors in each state, which is too little. There are thousands of dairies and groceries and restaurants in any big city,” said Naresh Kadyan, a consumer rights activist who has been campaigning for right quality of milk.
Even for those found guilty, punishment is a rarity. Convictions were only 1,402 in 2014-15, 540 in 2015-16 and 1591 in 2016-17. In most cases the authorities impose fines.
In 2014-15, total fines collected was Rs 11.28 crore, in 2015-16 it was Rs 21.65 crore and in 2016-17 it was Rs 15.90 crore.
“(Food adulteration) is a bailable offence and the accused have never got arrested. Basically, the food safety department is like a toothless tiger,” said Kadyan.
The Law Commission has recommended that sections 272 and 273 of the Indian Penal Code be amended to make adulteration a serious crime.
From milk to cereals: Food adulteration rampant but monitoring lax
Seized spurious milk powder and other material from a dairy unit.
NEW DELHI: Utsav Madan, a West Delhi resident, bought a packet of Moong Dal from a departmental store. As he boiled it the water turned a deep yellow. The artificial colour on the lentils wore off.
Debashish, a Thane resident, bought a box of sweets from a restaurant. The restaurant was smelly. The sweets were sour and too old to eat.
Both Utsav and Debashish were victims of food adulteration. Across the country consumers have complained about the quality of the food they are buying. These include milk and dairy products, spices and cereals. But unlike the hue and cry that breaks out when questions are asked on the quality of popular branded products, like ‘Maggi’ noodles in 2015, they rarely merit government attention.
Data from the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has now shown that state administrations choose to overlook not only complaints, but also evidence, of impure food.
An analysis of the FSSAI data shows authorities have tested similar sample sizes of edibles (around 80,000 per year) from across India while the number of ‘samples found adulterated’ has constantly risen in the same period.
The food and grocery business as grown at the same time, as has the size of the population. Food safety officers in the states are required to take food samples and send them for analysis in laboratories.
A total of 84,537 adulterated food samples were collected from all the states in the year 2014-15; in 2015-16, 77,941 samples were collected and in 2016-17 the number was 80,463.
In contrast, the number of adulterated food samples rose from 14,716 in the year 2014-15 to 16,133 in 2015-16 and to 16,659 in the year 2016-17.
“There are many issues. The departments in most states are short-staffed. There are only about 30-40 or 50 food inspectors in each state that is too little given the demand. There are thousands of dairies and groceries and restaurants in any big city,” said Naresh Kadyan, a consumer rights activist who has been campaigning for right quality of milk.
Advocate Umesh Sharma said the enforcement of law is poor. “We can’t rule out the nexus among the stakeholders. The issue is directly related to the public health and government should take some serious initiatives to implement the food safety rules,” he said.
Even for those found guilty punishment is a rarity. The number of convictions was only 1402 in the year 2014-15, 540 in 2015-16 and 1591 in 2016-17. In most cases the authorities impose fines.
In the year 2014-15, total fines collected was `11.28 crore, in 2015-16 it was `21.65 crore and in 2016-17 it was `15.90 crore.
“(Food adulteration) is a bailable offence and the accused have never got arrested. Basically, the food safety department is like a toothless tiger,” said Naresh Kadyan, the consumer activist.
The Law Commission has recommended that sections 272 and 273 of the Indian Penal Code be amended to make adulteration a serious crime.
Depending on the gravity of the offence, punishment could be up to life in prison. The panel, headed by former Supreme Court judge B S Chauhan, also wanted Section 357 of the Criminal Procedure Code to be amended so that courts can order compensation for victims. The law commission said the minimum punishment should start with six months in jail.
“To combat adulteration in food items like milk, spices, honey, water, oil and other such items FSSAI has released guidelines,” said an officer of the authority.
A senior official of the FSSAI said it is not only artificial colours and putrefaction that are considered to be impure food. Food that contains additives that exceed permissible limits also fail tests.
Officials said that while adulteration in food items becomes more rampant during festive season due to high demand, there were only a few such instances that have been in public focus in recent years.
Despite this, even the limited samples tested in the last three years clearly show that more and more food is being made artificially unfit for consumption.
243 notices served for fire safety violations
VADODARA: The Banyan City has witnessed major fires in 2017 like at the collector office and at Schaefflar India at Maneja, and it may not be a surprise if an incident like the one at Kamala Mills Compound in Mumbai is repeated here. Vadodara Fire and Emergency Services (VFES) this year has served notices to 243 premises owner for violation of fire safety norms.
According to sources in VFES, 80% of the 243 premises that were served notices were commercial properties where daily footfall was in thousands.
"These notices are served and a fine is slapped when the premises owner apply for renewal of the NOC (no objection certificate). While a few buildings do follow the norms like having fire extinguishers and the smoke detection and extinguishing systems, but many of them have outdated or non-functional systems," said a fire official.
Interestingly, the fire compliance ratio in the city was quite low. "Only 15% premises owner who have been served notice make changes in the fire safety systems," the official said.
Another senior fire official said that when the norms are not complied even after the notice they serve another notice to disconnect electricity and water connections of the building.
But such extreme steps have hardly been taken. "Legally, the water and electricity are essential services and these can be disconnected when the fine due is 30% of the building's value and the fine we slap is not that high compared to high value of the commercial buildings. So we do not snap water and electricity connections," the fire official said.
A station officer who has participated in many rescue operations told TOI: "There have been instances when the building owners make civil changes in the building to suit their commercial purposes, but they do not realize that such action of theirs will cost them heavily when a major mishap takes place."
Dec 30, 2017
Food safety officials check 25 restaurants
Vadodara: The food safety department of the Vadodara Municipal Corporation (VMC) stepped up its drive to check restaurants on Friday. Officials checked 25 restaurants in different parts of the city.
The drive began on Thursday when the civic body officials checked 13 restaurants in different parts of the city. With the New Year eve festivities nearing, VMC has increased vigilance to ensure that quality and hygiene of food items are maintained. Thousands of people will flock to these restaurants on Sunday night to usher in 2018.
The restaurants checked on Friday included those n Fatehgunj, Sangam, Harni and Sayajigunj areas. Samples of prepared food as well as raw materials were collected from here even as 62kg of food items kept in unhygienic conditions were disposed of by the officials. The officials also issued notices to four restaurants.
15 eateries closed down
Violation of food safety standards detected
Officials of the Food Safety Commissionerate have shut down 15 eateries functioning close to the Secretariat and the legislators’ hostel on charges of violation of food safety standards.
Ten special squads conducted raids on 60 restaurants and found many establishments to have flouted basic hygiene standards that had been prescribed under the Food Safety and Standards Act.
The eateries that were found to have functioned without the requisite licence and also failed to ensure the quality norms included the Hotel Chirag Inn, Trivandrum Cafeteria, Hotel Casamia, Jithu Joji eatery and Deepa Hotel at Palayam, an eatery at Vanross Junction, and the Housing Board canteen.
Besides, the squads also found some other restaurants, including Hotel Aroma Classic at Vanross Junction, Gulan Fast Food at Palayam, Hotel Teekay International, Hotel Arul Jyothi at Statue, Hotel Zam Zam at Palayam, KeralaUniversity Library canteen, Kuttanad Restaurant (near AKG Centre) and another outlet that sold meals at Vanross Junction had maintained low standards of hygiene. These restaurants were ordered to be closed down with immediate effect. A total fine of ₹3,42,500 was also collected by the squads from 10 eateries for non-compliance with the prescribed norms.
McDonald's 'blatantly' ignores food quality issues, follows different food standards for India: Vikram Bakshi
McDonald's India partner Vikram Bakshi on Thursday hit out at the fast food major, saying it follows 'different standards' for India compared to other countries and continuously ignored the food quality concerns raised by him in the past four years. His remarks came hours after McDonald's suggested that CPRL's new logistic vendor may pose risk to McDonald's food quality and safety standards.
Bakshi said: "It appears that McDonald's have global standards for food safety and supplies, and they have a very different set of standards for countries like ours which is a clear double standard."
Fight between McDonald's and its India partner Vikram Bakshi has been going on for a few years. However, the latest round of exchanges started earlier this week after CPRL's logistics partner Radhakrishna Foodland stopped the supply that led to the shutdown of all McDonald's outlets in East India.
Vikram Bakshi blamed McDonald's for the 'abrupt supply disruptions' and partnered with a new logistics vendor ColdEX. Bakshi's move did not go well with McDonald's. The fast food giant alleged it had not approved the new vendor. McDonald's said: "Using unapproved vendors for the supply chain is creating serious compliance risks to McDonalds standards for food quality and safety."
To which Bakshi responded, saying that issues concerning public health have been blatantly ignored by McDonald's with no responses, visits or actions on food safety. "It is indeed ironic that the conscience of McDonald's has suddenly awakened to quality and food safety in India, when for the past four years, CPRL has been bringing to their attention, including their CEO, Steve Easterbrook, issues of the same, without extracting a single response or visit from them," Bakshi said in a statement.
Earlier this week, Radhakrishna Foodland had discontinued its supply services alleging reduction in volume and non-payment of certain dues, among others. Termination of supplies affected about 100 restaurants in East and North India. Bakshi said this was a pre-planned step in collusion with McDonald's and their wholly owned subsidiary in India MIPL. Later, NCLT-appointed CPRL administrator asked Radhakrishna Foodland to resume the supply services as the termination was in contravention of the NCLT judgement that ordered for smooth functioning of the CPRL restaurants without any hindrance.
The fight between McDonald's and Bakshi began in 2013 after fast food giant removed Bakshi as the Managing Director of CPRL. The National Company Law Tribunal later reinstated him and also refrained McDonald's from interfering in the functioning of CPRL besides appointing an administrator to oversee the smooth functioning of CPRL. The battle which gained momentum after Bakhshi's ouster turned ugly when McDonald's India terminated the franchise agreement of 169 outlets this year in August. Both the parties are now fighting out their case in various legal forums including NCLT, NCLAT and Delhi high court. Meanwhile, Bakshi continues to operate the outlets.
McDonald's follows different food safety and supply standards for India, alleges Vikram Bakshi
New Delhi: McDonald's estranged partner Vikram Bakshi on Thursday hit out at the fast food major, saying it follows "different standards" for India compared to other countries and continuously ignored the food quality concerns raised by him for the past four years.
Bakshi's response came after McDonald's India earlier alleged lapses in food quality and safety level by "all facets of the supply chain".
"It appears that McDonald's have global standards for food safety and supplies, and they have a very different set of standards for countries like ours which is a clear double standard," Bakshi alleged.
Countering Bakshi, McDonald's India said: "Using unapproved vendors for the supply chain is creating serious compliance risks to McDonald's standards for food quality and safety."
The battle between McDonald's India and Bakshi-led Connaught Plaza Restaurants Ltd (CPRL) intensified after the latters logistics partner Radhakrishna Foodland abruptly stopped supplies, which led to closure of about 84 outlets, mostly in east India and some in north on Monday.
Sixteen of the 84 outlets resumed operations today after Bakshi roped in a new logistics vendor ColdEX.
Meanwhile, the fast food giant has alleged that the new vendor is not approved by it.
Bakshi said issues that concern public health of this country have been blatantly ignored by the American company with no responses, visits or actions on food safety issues that were red flagged for immediate attention.
"It is indeed ironic that the conscience of McDonald's has suddenly awakened to quality and food safety in India, when for the past four years, CPRL has been bringing to their attention, including their CEO, Steve Easterbrook, issues of the same, without extracting a single response or visit from them," he said in a statement.
Radhakrishna Foodland had discontinued its supply services alleging reduction in volume and non-payment of certain dues, among others. McDonald's India further said that globally, it works closely with trusted network of suppliers to uphold stringent practices and efforts over the years have been successful in consistently reducing customer complaints.
Stating that the termination of supplies has affected about 100 restaurants, Bakshi said this is a pre-planned step in collusion with McDonald's and their wholly owned subsidiary in India McDonald's India Pvt Ltd.
He further said the termination is in contravention of the NCLT judgement that ordered for smooth functioning of the CPRL restaurants without any hindrance.
After Bakshi was ousted as the MD of CPRL in 2013, the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) reinstated him to his position and also refrained McDonald's from interfering in the functioning of CPRL besides appointing an administrator to oversee the smooth functioning of CPRL.
The battle which gained momentum after Bakhshi's ouster turned ugly when McDonald's India terminated the franchise agreement with in August. Both the parties are now fighting out their case in various legal forums including NCLT, NCLAT and Delhi high court.
Meanwhile, Bakshi continues to operate the outlets.
Dec 28, 2017
Traders demand extension of FSSA deadline for licence
Trichy: The deadline of December 31, 2017 to apply for registration and license under Food Safety and Standards Act (FSSA) has irked the traders in Trichy, where the compliance of the food business operators (FBOs) to the Act was meagre.
Citing Trichy collector K Rajamani's warning of action against the traders a couple of months ago, Tamil Nadu Vanigar Sangangalin Peramaippu expressed its displeasure over the deadline and demanded it be extended till March 31, 2018.
"Our association has been protesting against the FSSA act resulting in the postponement of implementation of the Act a few times. The committee formed to remove the unrealistic rules and regulations from the Act is yet to consider our demands. Yet, the deadline for coming under the purview of the Act is set to be over in few days. So, we demand the government to extend the deadline for three months," said state general secretary of the association Ve Govindarajulu in a statement on Wednesday.
Out of the 20,000 FBOs including government run institutions like public distribution system, TASMAC that is to be covered under the Act, only 6,000 traders have turned up for registration and only 800 have applied for licenses according to their turnover.
Designated officer of food safety department in Trichy Dr R Senthilkumar said that the call on the demand for extension of the deadline can only be taken by the government. " One thing FBOs should know is that the Act will give protection to their business if they come under the purview," he added.
Get food items tested for adulteration, government will pay
The Centre has decided to invite members of the public to get any food item tested for unsafe ingredients after it emerged that not a single complaint has been filed with country’s top food regulator under a special Act introduced 11 years ago.
As per the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) Act, if food purchased by a person is established as adulterated, the cost of getting it tested is reimbursed. “In a recent FSSAI audit by the CAG, it emerged that there has not been a single complaint received under the Act and therefore, we have decided to widely advertise the provision,” an official in the Union health ministry said.
“Any individual can get suspicious food products tested at FSSAI laboratories. But since it’s a time-consuming procedure, most people shy away from doing so,” he said. “The process costs between Rs 2,000 and 5,000, depending on the food product.” FSSAI sources said thousands of tests are done at its labs. “None of them are done on complaints by consumers. Public participation is must to enhance food safety standards,” an official said.
Soon, more officers for food safety in every district
Aiming to tackle the lack of food safety authorities in states, the Health Ministry has sought appointment of Sub-Divisional Officers as "designated officers" for the purpose in every district, apart from the food inspectors.
The decision has been taken in view of the lack of food safety authorities in districts and also to give general public an option for grievance redressal.
"The Commissioner of Food Safety may, with the previous approval of the state government, appoint Sub-Divisional Officer of the area on additional charge basis as designated officer," said a Union Health and Family Welfare Ministry notification.
The amendment is part of Food Safety and Standards (Second Amendment) Rules, 2017. The notification also says that the Sub-Divisional Officers appointed as Designated officers will not be required to undergo such training.
It adds: "Where the Collector or District Magistrate considers necessary, he may delegate the powers exercisable by him... to an Additional Collector or Additional District Magistrate or a Sub-Divisional Officer of the area." IANS
No check on vendors selling ‘unhygienic’ food in Srinagar
SRINAGAR: A video showing adulterated food being openly sold in Srinagar went viral on Facebook. In the video, a customer was seen showing a packet of parathas which was unfit for consumption. That video raised alarm among netizens who commented how the lack of checks on street food was endangering the lives of city residents.
However, even as the video created an uproar on social media, the practice of selling adulterated and unhygienic food has far from stopped.
In the congested Amira Kadal area, scores of makeshift stalls sell biryani, kebabs, fried fish, and snacks in the open.
At on one such stall, customers wait their turn to have fried fish while the vendor serves them without using gloves.
He also served food to another customer who eagerly had it without noticing that he was eating off an unhygienic plate, for the vendor had served him without cleaning his plate.
This unhygienic practice, according to Dr Rubeena, former health officer at Srinagar Municipal Corporation, has had an adverse impact on people’s health.
“We should firstly take care of personal hygiene, we should make people aware about proper food hygiene and ways of selling street food. This unhygienic food can cause food poisoning, which can lead to a person’s death. We can’t stop this selling of street food because it has became a part of our culture, but we should make these food vendors aware about the ill effects of this unhygienic food.”
A vendor Parvaiz Ahmad selling snacks at a stall near Lal Ded Hospital, however, denied that street food was poisonous.
“We use the best quality of ingredients such as P Mark flour and refined oil for snack preparation. We also use clean water,” he added.
Assistant Commissioner Food Safety, Srinagar, Hilal Mir told Kashmir Reader that they have acted against street vendors selling unhygienic food.
“We have filed 150 cases this year so far,” he said, citing an example of a vendor who was fined Rs 10,000 for using adulterated oil to prepare delicacies in Srinagar.
“We are appealing to these street vendors to cover all food items with a cloth or paper and not to reuse mustard oil,” he said.
Dec 27, 2017
Health ministry invites people to report unsafe food items, get reimbursements if complaint holds true
As per the section 40 Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) Act, if food purchased by a person is established as adulterated, the cost of getting it tested is reimbursed.
NEW DELHI: The Centre has decided to widely invite members of the public to come forward and get any food item tested for any unsafe ingredients after it emerged that not a single complaint has been filed with country’s top food regulator under a special act introduced 11 years back.
As per the section 40 Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) Act, if food purchased by a person is established as adulterated, the cost of getting it tested is reimbursed.
“However, in a recent FSSAI audit by the Comptroller and Auditor General of India it emerged that there has not been a single complaint received under the act and therefore we have decided to widely advertise the provision,” a senior official in the Union Ministry of Health and Family welfare told this newspaper.
He added that most consumers refrain from getting food products tested for adulteration fearing high costs of the process.
"Any individual can get suspicious food products tested at FSSAI laboratories, but since it's a time-consuming procedure, most people shy away from doing so,” he also said.
The process costs Rs 2,000 to Rs 5,000, depending on the food product. But, the regulatory body has a provision under which the regulatory body will gladly reimburse the testing fees to the consumer," an official said.
Section 40 of the FSSCI Act states, "If the report of the food analyst shows that the article of food is not in compliance with the Act or the rules or regulations made there under, the purchaser shall be entitled to get refund of the fees paid by him under this section.”
Sources in the FSSAI said that thousands of food analyses are done at its labs every month. “But, none of them are done because of complaints by the consumers on adulterated food product—that participation from public is required to enhance food safety standards in the country,”
The act also says that if the food product is deemed in contravention of the provisions of the FSSAI act, the product seller stands to lose his or her licence or be fined.
In a report tabled in the parliament last week, CAG had pulled up FSSAI for issuing licences to food business operators without complete documents and questioned it on the quality of testing with most state labs not being accredited by India’s top accreditation agency.
The audit report had also said the food regulator also failed to ensure that unsafe foods are not imported to the country.
A father sues to curb junk food as diabetes spreads in India
Since 1990, the percent of children and adults in India who are overweight or obese has almost tripled to 18.8 per cent from 6.4 per cent.
NEW DELHI: Rahul Verma’s son was born gravely ill with digestive problems, but over years of visits to the boy’s endocrinologist, Verma saw the doctor grow increasingly alarmed about a different problem, one threatening healthy children. Junk food, the doctor warned, was especially dangerous to Indians, who are far more prone to diabetesthan people from other parts of the world.
One day in the doctor’s waiting room, Verma noticed a girl who had gotten fat by compulsively eating potato chips. He decided he had to do something.
“On one side you have children like my son, who are born with problems,” said Verma, “and on the other side you have children who are healthy and everything is fine and you are damaging them giving them unhealthy food.”
Verma, who had no legal training, sat late into the nights with his wife, Tullika, drafting a petition in their tiny apartment. He filed the public interest lawsuit in Delhi High Court in 2010, seeking a ban on the sale of junk food and soft drinks in and around schools across India.
The case has propelled court-ordered regulations of the food industry to the doorstep of the Indian government, where they have languished. They have outsized importance in India, population 1.3 billion, because its people are far more likely to develop diabetes — which can lead to heart disease, kidney failure, blindness and amputations — as they gain weight than people from other regions, according to health experts.
Since 1990, the percent of children and adults in India who are overweight or obese has almost tripled to 18.8 percent from 6.4 percent, according to data from the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington.
The International Diabetes Federation projects that the number of Indians with diabetes will soar to 123 million by 2040 as diets rich in carbohydrates and fat spread to less affluent rural areas.
“We are sitting on a volcano,” said Dr. Anoop Misra, chairman of a diabetes hospital at Fortis Healthcare, one of India’s biggest private hospital chains.
In the years since the court ordered the government to develop guidelines to regulate junk food, the case has encountered ferocious opposition from the All India Food Processors Association, which counts Coca-Cola India, PepsiCo India and Nestlé India as members, as well as hundreds of other companies.
Subodh Jindal, president of the association, said in an interview that junk food was unfairly blamed for diabetes and obesity. It was overeating, not the food itself, that has caused the problem, he said.
The government this year took a significant step that public health experts believe will help combat the rise of obesity. It partially implemented a tax on sugar sweetened beverages, instituting a 40 percent tax on such drinks that are carbonated, though not on juices made with added sugars that many children drink.
But so far, the regulations to ban sales near schools sought by the court in Verma’s case have led to naught.
Jagat Prakash Nadda, India’s minister of health and family welfare, did not respond to repeated requests for comment, but Pawan Agarwal, chief executive of the Food Safety Standards Authority of India, the body in the ministry responsible for such regulations, insisted that the government’s efforts have been sincere.
“This may appear to be typical of India. When you have an issue, you set up so many committees and confuse the whole issue,” he said. But he insisted: “People are concerned. They want to do something about it. Therefore everyone is setting up committees.”
As the case has played out on Twitter and in newspapers, some schools have voluntarily stopped serving junk food.
Verma, 42, quit his job as a corporate marketing executive after his son’s birth in 2006 and set up a foundation in 2007 to help families like his with sick children. At one point, though, Verma begged the judge to let him withdraw the petition.
But Chief Justice Dipak Misra refused. Instead, spotting a senior advocate, Neeraj Kishan Kaul, in the courtroom, the judge ordered him to act as the pro bono lawyer for Verma’s case.
As Kaul, 54, approached the bench, he recalled, he joked to the judge, “You’ve got the wrong guy. I like junk food.”
An Increased Risk
Scientists searched for genes that predisposed Indians to diabetes, but did not find them. Instead, a growing body of research suggests that Indians’ body type — one that is smaller but with more abdominal fat — may be responsible.
Being born to a malnourished woman — a common phenomenon in India — may also increase the odds of developing diabetes.
Dr. Chittaranjan Yajnik, a diabetes specialist, and Barry Popkin, a professor of nutrition at the University of North Carolina, are among the researchers exploring a theory that Indians evolved what Yajnik has called “a thin-fat” body type over millenniums as a way to survive famines when monsoons failed.
In the 1990s, Yajnik began following the pregnancies of hundreds of women in villages outside Pune, a city in western India, and tested their offspring as they grew up.
Compared with infants in Britain, Indian newborns were about 1.5 pounds lighter but had more abdominal fat and higher levels of certain hormones in their cord blood, he found, suggesting a predisposition to diabetes.
Yajnik said he believes Indians’ susceptibility to diabetes may have emerged as their diets changed with rising affluence — and that their bodies, attuned to scarcity, couldn’t handle an overload of food.
Although obesity and overweight are far less prevalent in India (24 percent last year) than in Canada (about 60 percent), for example, adults there are just as likely to develop diabetes as in Canada, a New York Times analysis of data from the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation found.
In the years since Verma filed his suit, sales of packaged foods have increased 138 percent; fast food 83 percent; and carbonated drinks 58 percent, according to Euromonitor International, the market research firm.
Coca-Cola Co.'s chief executive James Quincey, in an interview with Indian media earlier this year, said that he expected the Indian market to eventually become the company’s third largest in sales, up from sixth.
Coca-Cola and PepsiCo have announced plans to invest billions of dollars in the Indian market. They have also said they plan to increase their offerings of drinks with less sugar and more fruit.
Sanjay Khajuria, a Nestlé India spokesman, said the food processors association, which opposed Verma’s case, had “taken into account inputs received by the association from its members,” and declined further comment. He also noted that the company has joined other companies in India to restrict advertising directed at children younger than 12 to products with a certain level of nutrients.
A Coca-Cola spokesman referred questions on the lawsuit to the food association. PepsiCo India’s vice president of sales, Harsh K. Rai, also declined to comment on the lawsuit. He said the company has stopped advertising to children 12 and younger.
The Future of the Fight
In early 2015, the food authority in the Health Ministry finally recommended regulations to the court, including some limitations on the sale of junk food around schools. The judge ordered the recommendations carried out within three months. Instead, the food authority appointed yet another committee.
Agarwal, chief executive of the food authority, insisted his agency is finally ready to start adopting new rules early next year for labeling healthy food with a green light and those high in fat, sugar and salt with a red light.
But he said taxing junk food and banning it around schools were long term goals.
“There is no point in confronting industry on these issues,” he said.
Verma was emphatic that someone needs to continue the fight; he is just not sure that someone is him. He is convinced the unending legal battle gave him high blood pressure.
His former partner on the case, pro bono lawyer Kaul, said India needs more than Verma to make change happen.
“You need a movement to fight the inertia of the system,” he said, sipping a can of Coke.
Dec 26, 2017
Durga temple laddu doesn’t confirm to FSSAI standards
Laddus, worth lakhs of rupees spoiled in 2008, 2009, 2015 and 2016, says V&E report
Lakhs of devotees visit the Sri Durga Malleswara Swamy Devastanam, perform puja, offer vows (mokkus) and take prasadams with devotion. But, you might be shocked to know that the temple management is reportedly not maintaining standards in preparing the prasadam.
The contractors and the staff engaged in the potu (prasadam making unit) have been allegedly resorting to high-level corruption and not maintaining quality in making the prasadams.
The temple management sells ‘pulihora’ and ‘laddus’, and distributes ‘pongali’, ‘anna prasadam’, ‘daddojanam’ and other prasadams to the devotees. But, the prasadams being distributed are not of good quality, according to the Vigilance and Enforcement (V&E) officials, who conducted raids recently.
Many irregularities
“We found irregularities in allotting tenders for provisions, variations in stock registers, not maintaining any registers in allotment of provisions such as cashew, raisins, ghee, edible oil, almond and other items to the potu daily and poor quality in prasadams,” says Regional Vigilance and Enforcement Officer (RVEO) M. Ravindranath Babu.
“The temple management destroyed 41,978 laddus, worth about ₹4.2 lakh, as worms were found and yeast was formed in them, and ordered for an inquiry in 2016. The Vigilance and Enforcement Department has submitted a report to the government recently”, the RVEO said.
As per our investigation, laddu contractor M. Ramesh supplied 52,000 laddus to the devastanam on October 2, 2016, of which 41,978 stored in the temple’s kalyana mandapam were spoiled the next day. The temple authorities destroyed the laddus on October 5.
“On October 4, 2016, officials of Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) collected samples of the spoilt laddus and submitted a report on October 27, stating that the quality of laddu prasadam ‘is not within the limits of FSSAI standards and the laddus contained yeast and moulds”, the RVEO explained.
Blacklisted
As per Vigilance report, temple Executive Officer A. Surya Kumari stated that about ₹4.2 lakh was recovered from the contractor Mr. Ramesh and he was blacklisted from participating in tenders for the next five years.
“During investigation, it was revealed that laddu prasadam was also spoiled in 2008, 2009, 2015 and 2016. But, no criminal action was initiated against the contractor or the staff concerned who are monitoring the quality of prasadams. We noticed that poor quality ingredients are being used in preparing prasadams”, Mr. Ravindranath Babu said.
Mumbai: Chicken served in fast food joints unhealthy due to heavy usage of antibiotics, alleges PIL
Mumbai: Think before ordering food at any of the multinational fast food joints. A Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed in the Bombay High Court alleges that the food being served there is unhealthy due to the heavy usage of antibiotics.
Advocate Shehzad Naqvi filed a PIL on December 22 in the HC against fast foods chain suppliers. In the PIL, he has alleged that these companies are using antibiotics and genetically treated chicken which are harmful for health. The PIL also seeks action against use of chemicals by fruit and vegetable vendors and poultry farms in India are using pig fat and growth hormones in chicken.
“As per the official documents of the Union Health Ministry, these giant fast food manufacturers do not follow proper guidance to ensure healthy food supply. These meals contain sodium, unhealthy fat, carbs that cause a severe effect on health in a long term. Nowadays, many schools going children consume these meals on a daily basis which would leave serious implications on their health. So, this needs to be stopped,” said Naqvi.
As per the PIL, these fast food supplying chains are using genetically added substances, which are banned, which is prima-facie a violation of section 22 of the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006. “It highlights how innocent children are eating genetically-treated chicken from multinational fast food brands, which is harmful to their health,” reads the PIL.
In the PIL, Naqvi also alleged that chickens raised in poultry farms are injected with pig fat and phosphates to increase their weight. He has also sought action the vegetable vendors who use chemicals in foods. “The vegetable and fruit vendors use banned chemicals like calcium carbide for artificial ripening of fruits. Not only that in vegetables they use harmful chemicals to provide artificial shine,” he added.
“These phosphate additives found in meat and chicken are called ‘Vascular Toxins’, capable of impairing arterial functions within hours of consumption. It further bears mention that these chicken also contain arsenic toxicity can lead to cancer of the bladder, lung, skin, kidney and colon. Even low levels of exposure can lead to paralysis and diabetes,” said Dr Om Shrivastav, Infectious Disease Expert.
City doctors have raised concern over the health hazards of the usage of these chemicals. “You must have seen while buying apples that the sellers apply wax to provide a shining look and retain the moisture. As per the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), sellers can use edible wax such as beewax, carnauba and petroleum jelly. But often, the quality of the wax is not maintained which leads to the development of infections and ulcers when the body fails to absorb the wax,” said nutritionist Dr Uma Prasad.
The PIL also raises concern about the usage of pig fat and growth hormones in chicken that is banned by the Union agriculture ministry. As per The World Health Organization (WHO), usage of artificial hormones can affect reproduction and also alter the functioning of endocrine in humans.
Crackdown on shops selling expired soft drinks
Food safety and drugs administration has cracked down on shops in and around Srirangam selling soft drinks which have passed its expiry date, ahead of Vaikunda Ekadesi festival.
Since the commencement of the inspection on December 18, food safety officers (FSOs) attached to the food safety department of Trichy found carbonated drinks beyond expiry date on display at shops. The officials let the vendors with a warning after seizing the drinks.
"We seized soft drinks from four to five shops and destroyed them. We will issue notices to such shops asking them to follow procedure. If they continue to violate, they will be slapped with cases," said designated officer (DO) of food safety department Dr R Senthilkumar on Monday.
Besides Srirangam, the drive is being conducted at shops in the entry points such as Chathiram bus stand, No 1 toll gate, TVS toll gate and central bus stand to check if there was any sale of such items. The drive will be intensified from Tuesday and it will go on till December 29.
The officials asked the people to check the manufacturing date and expiry date before consuming such stuffs. The doctors warn of either mild or severe health complications as the consequence of consuming the any food items which crossed it expiry date.
Now FSSAI to certify popular and top street food places in India
New Delhi, December 25: In a great move, Food Safety and Standards Authority of India will ensure that all kinds of street food served are safe and hygienic. The top food regulator is likely to certify popular and top street food places in India after assuring food quality.
“Street food is popular among people and there already are streets and cluster of shops in different states that are known for their street food. What we are planning is to ensure that the food served at these places is safe and hygienic,” said Pawan Agarwal, CEO- FSSAI.
“The parameters that we are considering include best practices for garbage disposal, maintaining personal hygiene, demarcating cooking and non-cooking area, working street lights, pest control and overall cleanliness among other things,” he said.
After planning of various guidelines for the certification process, local authorities will be involved in the project to ensure proper regulatory oversight. Eating unhygienic food, especially street food, can lead to serious health conditions.
“The parameters that we are considering include best practices for garbage disposal, maintaining personal hygiene, demarcating cooking and non-cooking area, working street lights, pest control and overall cleanliness among other things,” he said.
Notably, The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) had pulled up the FSSAI for issuing licences to food business operators without complete documents and questioned it on the quality of testing with 65 out of 72 state labs not being accredited by the National Accreditation Board for Testing and Calibration Laboratories (NABL).
Dec 24, 2017
HEALTH DEPT OFFERS CAREFREE DAYS FOR FOOD ADULTERATORS
In a time when the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) has come down heavily on Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) for its negligent processes of approval to food testing laboratories across country in its report tabled in Parliament on Tuesday, the State Health Department appears having no interest in providing even minimum manpower for the purpose.
Not from a week or a month, more than one and half dozen districts of State don’t have independent District Food Inspector since months and the charge of one of the most sensitive and responsible job of conducting raids to keep tab on adulteration of food items has remained on the shoulders of the officials already burdened with some other jobs.
Needless to say, food adulterators are enjoying heavenly days for them in State, keeping lives of people on stake. And the reply from the department remains consistent. Health Department Minister Ramchandra Chandravanshi in July this year assured of necessary appointments done soon. “We are aware of the fact and are in process of getting officials placed on their jobs soon,” said a Department official seeking anonymity on Thursday.
“I am doing what I can do, and trying to do it within given time. But just one food analyst is not at all enough for entire State. This is why I am overtime working employee most of the time. I am sure I shall be welcomed with piles of food samples to be tested the moment I resume office anytime a week later,” said Food Analyst Chaturbhuj Meena who keeps himself buried testing samples in the only Food Testing Laboratory in State situated in Namkum.
Interestingly, Meena was in Madhya Pradesh for the week to appear in various courts as a witness in the cases he lodged against food samples found adulterated during his tenure as Food Analyst in Madhya Pradesh until two years ago. The lab in Namkum remained deserted in his absence.
Notably, CAG in its tabled report in Parliament found that licenses to food testing laboratories were issued on the basis of incomplete documents in more than 50 per cent of the cases out of some 72 laboratories test-checked in the audit. The apex auditor also found that neither FSSAI nor the state food authorities had documented policies and procedures on risk-based inspections.
FSSAI Attempts To Pacify Citizens After A Negative CAG Report
A recent report by the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) bashed the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) on the inefficiency and glitches in its functioning. Now, the FSSAI is trying to reassure the citizens by saying that they can trust the food that they eat says a report by the Economic Times.
FSSAI CEO RESPONDS TO THE CAG REPORT
The FSSAI is not only pacifying people but also has made a commitment to increase the food safety and hygiene with an investment of Rs.480 crore which will be used to modernise state food testing labs. The CEO of the FSSAI, Pawan Agarwal also said in a statement that they have requested the government to increase about 600 employees in the central authority so that it meets the manpower shortage. This, he said is so that the regulator is able to discharge all the functions along with framing standards and ensuring compliances.
Agarwal also added that the regulator is reviewing the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006 and in the coming three or four months, it will make recommendations to the health ministry. “We assure citizens that they can trust food they get. The FSSAI is confident that the country’s food safety ecosystem is well on the way to become more robust and globally benchmarked in the years to come,” he the reporters in a statement on Thursday.
Responding to the CAG report Agarwal said that the regulator, “appreciates the inputs from CAG to improve performance of food safety. The CAG report should, however, be seen in the context of the huge and complex task at hand and the fact that the FSSAI is new an evolving organisation and it faces severe constraints of manpower and resources. The FSSAI continues to be committed to raise the bar for food safety and hygiene in the country so that citizens can trust food they get in the marketplace.”
Dec 23, 2017
Question raised in Lok Sabha on Adulteration in Food Items
Question raised in Lok Sabha on Adulteration in Food Items, 22/12/2017. Cases of adulteration, including use of harmful chemicals in food items, do come to the notice of Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) from time to time.
The Food Safety Officers in the States/UTs take food samples on regular basis and send them for analysis in the food laboratories to check the compliance of the provisions of Food Safety Standards Act, 2006, Rules and Regulations made thereunder.
The data on food samples collected, tested, found not conforming and action taken against the defaulter Food Business Operators is being received by FSSAI from States/UTs. The information on food samples received from States/UTs for the last three years is at Annexure- I, II and III respectively. For current year, half yearly data has been received only from 2 States and is at Annexure IV.
Plastic bottles pose threat to people
\Kurnool: Usage of plastic articles is increasing in our day-to-day lives. Gone are the days when water was stored in in clay pots. Plastic made articles have replaced all the articles in the kitchen.
Despite their hazardous impact on people’s health, the use of PET bottles has increased to a great extent. From fruit juice sellers to coconut water vendors, the use of recycled PET bottles are on the rise.
There is no monitoring mechanism from the food safety and industrial departments. Lack of proper guidelines from the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has turned into an advantage for these manufacturers.
Citizens prefer the usage of recycled plastic as they are handy despite conducting awareness camps. There was no proper mechanism for testing these products in Andhra Pradesh, said a Food Safety Department official, on condition of anonymity. Even doctors also warned that recycled PET bottles were highly carcinogenic in nature.
Dr Shiva Prasad, a gynaecologist from the city speaking to The Hans India here on Friday said that consuming food products packed in recycled plastic damages health in the long run. It is better to avoid them, he added.
‘Food safety on wheels’ on the move
ITANAGAR, Dec 22: ‘Food safety on wheels’ – a mobile food testing laboratory – is on the move in the state to ensure foods are safe to eat.
This vehicular unit, provided by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India, has facilities for quick qualitative testing and detection of common adulterants in foods. It will also be used for spreading awareness on food safety and hygiene among the people.
Informing that the vehicular mobile unit has so far collected several food samples in the capital region and adjoining areas since its launch on 26 September this year, the Health Service department’s food safety unit has advised the public to submit samples of milk, iodized salt, edible oils etc, and get on-the-spot test reports, when the vehicle goes to their localities.
The vehicle will travel to Lower Subansiri, Lower Siang, West Kameng, Lohit, Namsai, and various other places during the next couple of months.
FDA Maharashtra: Ensuring Quality at Every Step
The Food and Drug Administration, Maharashtra, completely understands that eating out is a common phenomenon. A plan is underway to implement quality check for all street vendors, restaurants, big restaurants chains and hotels. Training schedules have been planned for the entire Maharashtra, and in the next two months 50,000 people will be receiving training under it, says Dr Pallavi Darade, Commissioner, Food and Drug Administration and Food Safety, Government of Maharashtra, in conversation with Harshal Desai of Elets News Network (ENN).
What kind of initiatives FDA, Maharashtra has undertaken? How will you take these initiatives further?
Over the years, Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Maharashtra has established itself as an influencing governing body. The practices followed by the institution are emulated across the country. All the initiatives undertaken by the organisation have been proved to very positive and comprehensive. Be it related to drug development or food safety, the organisation has been at the forefront of bringing best practices on the table.
In the last four to five months, after I assumed the role of commissioner, we have carried out few more initiatives. One of such projects is related to the quality of ‘Prasad’ that is distributed to the people at various religious places. We have recently undertaken a project under which we have trained about 300 ‘Mandir Trustees’ on preparing ‘Prasad’ and ‘Mahaprasad.’ We had undertaken a project at the famous Siddhi Vinayak Temple in Mumbai to ensure the ‘Prasad’ is prepared in more blissful and hygienic manner.
We also ensured the use of scientific processes and better labelling of the ‘Prasad’ offered to devotees. We provided guidance to authorities for three to four months, and as a result, the ‘Prasad’ is now accepted by US FDA. The success of the project encouraged us to extend the campaign across the state. The campaign was properly framed. We appointed nodal officers and trainers to ensure the success of the campaign in a timely manner. We trained about 3,000 people during our campaign. The campaign also included ‘Gurudwaras.’ This first-of-its-kind initiative was highly appreciated by the Chief Executive Officer of FSSAI and authorities in the Central Government.
In total, we have so far organised about 150 different workshops and training programmes to train more than 26,000 people in both food and drug businesses.
What about the street food vendors and restaurants?
We completely understand that eating out is a common phenomenon. We are planning to implement the similar process for all street vendors, restaurants, big restaurants chains and hotels. We have already planned training schedules for the entire Maharashtra, and in the next two months we will be training about 50,000 people. We will be doing a full-day presentation as to what our actions are all about. We will hand them over checklists and ensure they follow it diligently.
We also run campaigns during festival seasons to check the quality of sweets being sold in the market.
Would you brief us on the recent directive related to Schedule M drugs?
We had realised that some manufacturers were not meeting the compliances for Schedule M drugs. There are about 40-50 compliances which need to be followed, but some units were not following and adhering to these standards. We have now made it compulsory to file the schedules to us after complying with all the conditions. This step will allow the manufacturers to adhere to manufacturing standards and ensure complete quality control. Here, we tried to bring the focus on the compliances within factories. Secondly, we have made similar checklists for druggist, chemists and pharmacies to ensure implementation of the best practices.
How FDA is making the most of IT and Digital Transformation?
We are the only FDA in the world to issue WHO GMP certification online. We have recently received recognition for this at the Food and Pharma Summit organised by Elets Technomedia and Gujarat’s Food and Drug Administration. We are further extending the software provided by Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI).
We also have received approval from the Department of Information Technology. All the activities related to prosecution, inspection – anything and everything done by FDA Maharashtra – will be available online. We are launching the pilot in Mumbai and Thane. Again, this extension of the software has been appreciated by the officers in Delhi. A great digital revolution has happened in FDA. Digital transformation not only helped us streamline the operations but also increased transparency.
What is the significance of the Pink Book released by FSSAI?
‘The Pink Book: Your Guide for Safe and Nutritious Food at Home’ is guidelines for home use. It educates you on how to store raw food at home, how to cook food, healthy eating habits, packaging techniques used for food, the various hygienic practices. This is prepared by FSSAI. We are trying to distribute it to maximum people.
How do you rate the current Lab infrastructure?
Lab infrastructure is improving. We are extending the Mumbai Lab on the fourth floor at our Headquarter. We are also in the process of building a microbiology lab here at the cost of about 4.5 crores. We are building a new campus in Aurangabad which will be completed by March 2018. We have received the approval to build a 17-crore project in Nagpur. We wish to have robust laboratories in all our seven divisions. We will also be receiving new lab instruments by the Government of India. Besides, we have also got approval to add 17 vehicles in our fleet under the upgradation process.
We are the only FDA in the world to issue WHO GMP certification online. We have recently received recognition for this at the Food and Pharma Summit organised by Elets Technomedia and Gujarat’s Food and Drug Administration. We are further extending the software provided by Food Safety and Standards Authority of India.
Do we face manpower issues in FDA, Maharashtra?
It has been an issue. We, however, have started appointing Food Safety Officers. We have promoted officers and also reviewed the suspensions of several others. About 100 people have been appointed in the last four months. We have already asked for 400 drug inspectors to oversee the compliance to the Drugs Act in their respective jurisdictions. Thus, we are determined to strengthen the workforce.
Centre to enact law on unsealed water sale
Nagpur: The central government will enact a law to curb the sale of unsafe and unsealed water. The law will come into effect from January 1, said Girish Bapat, food and civil supplies minister, in the legislative council on Friday.
NCP MLC Prakash Gajbhiye had raised this issue during the question hour.
Gajbhiye said unsealed water was being sold on a large scale in Nagpur. "In wedding receptions and other such functions, such water is supplied and the consumers drink it as they have no choice. This water is of worse quality than that supplied by the Nagpur Municipal Corporation (NMC). The civic agency supplies water of good quality," he said.
The MLC further said in outer areas, water is supplied through tankers, which is many times very turbid. "The tanker owners draw water from wells and supply it without any treatment. In one case, the tanker was found to have a two-feet thick layer of earth," he added.
Bapat admitted that the quality of unsealed water sold in cans was very poor. "We have registered 80 cases against these suppliers many times but now the Centre has asked us to stop it as it is bringing in a new law," he said.
The city has hundreds, probably thousands, of water manufacturing units that are selling 'drinking' water in chilled cans and jars. But the containers are unpackaged and unsealed, the units are unhygienic and unmonitored and the water not tested regularly.
Moreover, the units are operating without licences from Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) or Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), which are mandatory for selling packaged drinking water.
In April this year, the Nagpur bench of Bombay high court had directed the state government to act against those selling packaged drinking water in unsealed containers. A month later, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Nagpur division, sent closure notices to about seven units of the region, selling unpackaged drinking water without mandatory licences.
According to experts, groundwater is the major source for most of the unpackaged water manufacturing units. As there are good chances of groundwater contamination, mainly through sewage, it is very important to treat it scientifically at different stages.
Dec 22, 2017
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